Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2

The GH2 is the best G-series camera to date, and the improvements that Panasonic has made compared to the GH1 and G2, especially regarding AF performance and movie shooting, are meaningful and very welcome. We love the combination of physical control points and touchscreen operation, and ultimately, only murky JPEG output in low-contrast environments lets the GH2 down.

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*Look and feel*. The Panasonic GH2 bears such a striking resemblance to its predecessor it'd be easy to confuse the two if it weren't for the new badging and the two-tone color option. Dimensions, excluding protrusions, are 4.88 x 3.53 x 2.98 inches (124 x 89.6 x 75.8mm) and weight is approximately 21.48 ounces (609g) with the SD card and battery, and a 14-42mm lens attached. The Panasonic...

The GH2 really is as good as Compact System Cameras come. Those doubting the Micro Four Thirds concept will be impressed at the improvement in image quality (as it can genuinely rival a DSLR for much of its ISO range), and the new ‘light speed' AF system is better than on any other contrast-detection system in the market - and that includes all compacts, Compact System Cameras and DSLRs.

The Lumix DMC-GH2 features a solid design (despite being plastic), tons of customizable controls, a rotating touchscreen LCD, ridiculously fast autofocus performance, plenty of manual controls, Full HD video recording (with continuous AF and manual controls), and much more. Cons include some highlight clipping in photos at times, as well as mild redeye. Videos taken at the 1080/60i setting have...

Panasonic's Lumix DMC-GH2 is one of the most successful hybrid cameras we've tested at Camera Labs. It confidently captures both high quality stills and HD video with the minimum of fuss or compromise, while also boasting a number of capabilities that take it beyond most rivals. If you want a single camera which does photos very well and movies even better, the Lumix GH2 should be high on...